As we enter July, you may be finding that you’ve been invigorated by the end of winter and the opportunity for summer fun. On the other hand, you may be someone who struggles to adjust to the hotter, less structured months of the year. Wherever you find yourself on this spectrum, Cottonwood in Tucson, Arizona, can offer some tips for making the most of your mental health this summer.
When Summer Poses a Challenge
There are people who love summer, but for others, it can be a very difficult time of year. Some reasons why this may be include:
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Although it is more common for people to struggle with seasonal depression in the winter months, some people have SAD symptoms in the summer. Their symptoms often include insomnia, reduced appetite, weight loss, and irritability.
- Adjustments to regular routines: If you work in a job that looks a lot different based on season, or if you are a student or a parent of young children, you may find that all of the framework that creates structure in your days goes out the window in the summertime. While this can be a great opportunity to do things that may not normally fit into your schedule, it can also make it more difficult to manage mental health if you don’t have a solid plan in place.
- Temperature increases: Unlike other parts of the country, where summer increases what outdoor activities a person can do, in Arizona, this is generally not the case. The extreme heat often forces people indoors, which can result in isolation and loneliness.
- Travel-induced stress: It can be great for your mental health to get out and see the world. On the other hand, if you tend to overspend while you are traveling, the resulting financial stress can linger for months after you return home.
Navigating Summer Mental Health
If you’re finding that your mental health or your child’s mental health is already worse than it was a few months ago, it’s not too late to turn things around. Some steps you could take to get your mental health back on track include:
- Adding routines: Pull out a calendar and start filling it in with activities that will give you a sense of purpose, make you feel more accomplished, or increase your self-care. Making your days more predictable will decrease how many choices you have to make, ensure that you know what to expect, give you something to look forward to, and generally reduce your stress level. If you need ideas for age-specific suggestions for kids, the Crisis Text Line has you covered. Also, don’t be too quick to throw away the parts of your regular routine that served you well. If morning meditation or an afternoon break for a snack helps you get through the day, you should keep doing those things in the summer too.
- Burn off some energy: It’s hot and you don’t want to go outside. That doesn’t mean you can’t get in a workout. You might just need to get creative. By changing the time you exercise to early mornings or late evenings or moving your workout indoors or into the water, you can still get the mental health boosting benefits of exercise.
- Better input for better output: The things you eat and drink directly impact how you feel, physically and mentally. If you’re taking your medications as prescribed, eating a nutritious, well-balanced diet, drinking plenty of water, and avoiding alcohol, you’re going to feel better.
- Stay connected to other people: The summer months can make it harder for kids to connect with school friends, whom they are used to seeing daily during the rest of the year. If possible, try to help kids see their friends in person, connect with them virtually, or stay busy with camps and community events, so they don’t feel alone. This need doesn’t go away with age. Adults also need to connect with their loved ones to feel supported and connected.
At Cottonwood, our focus on whole-person care includes treating the mind, body, and spirit. Our mental health and addiction treatment programs go beyond therapy and medication to include nutrition, exercise, spirituality, and much more.
